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Illus. in full color. A special paperback edition of the book accompanies the cassette, which features spirited original music, humorous sound effects, and John Cleese's hilarious narration. Cassette running time: approx. 20 min.

"Smick"
Written by Doreen Cronin, author of Click, Clack, Peep!, and ingeniously illustrated by newcomer Juana Medina, Smick is a story of unlikely friendship, a sense of adventure, and a lot of fun wordplay.
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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

"When I was quite young and quite small for my size, I met an old man in the Desert of Drize." The old man looks like a cross between a cartoon granddad and a swami; he sits on top of a cactus, and tells his young listener that the best way to get over any sadness is to imagine all the ways you could be worse off. "Suppose, just suppose, you were poor Herbie Hart, who has taken his Throm-dim-bu-lator apart!" This has a more hurried, formulaic feel than the best Seuss, and it seems to showcase a less acute grasp of child psychology than usual. (Does it really make a child feel better to think of poor Harry Haddow, who, "try as he will, can't make a shadow," or Gucky Gown, "who lives by himself ninety miles out of town"?) But the illustrations alone make this morality tale a minor classic. (Ages 4 to 8) --Richard Farr--This text refers to the
Hardcover
edition.

From the Inside Flap

Illus. in full color. A special paperback edition of the book accompanies the cassette, which features spirited original music, humorous sound effects, and John Cleese's hilarious narration. Cassette running time: approx. 20 min.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

Theodore Seuss Guisel is, of course, one of the best known children's authors today. Though he left us in 1994, his legacy lives on and his books are still produced, bought and loved as much now as anytime in the past. When we think of him, we immediately think of "The Cat in the Hat" or "How the Grinch Stole Christmas", but we can easily forget some of his wonderful, lesser-known works. "When I was quite young and quite small for my size I met an old man in the Desert of Drize..." So begins "Did I Ever Tell You..." where the narrator finds an old man sitting atop a prickly cactus in the middle of the desert. The man tells the boy narrator that whenever HE feels like his life isn't going well, he reminds himself how lucky he really IS. He could be, for example, a construction worker on the impossibly rickety Bunglebung Bridge, where workers are toiling over the water to finish the impossibly crooked structure. Yes, things could be far worse!! You could be a Poogle-Horn Player who has to honk away on your complex, tuba-like Poogle-Horn while descending a flight of stairs... on a two story unicycle, no less!! The absurdness of people less fortunate splash across each page, Seuss-like, as Mr. Bix wakes up at 6 in the morning to find that his Borfin has schlumpped over, or Mr. Potter who has to dot i's and cross t's on endless, miles-long spools of paper! Yes, things could be far worse than they are, Ducky, so count yourself lucky! Published in 1973, "Have I Ever Told You..." is a wonderfully funny book with some subtle messages. Written during a period of time when parents were still forever admonishing their children, "you're so lucky to be able to eat those Brussels sprouts!! Why, there's children starving in Africa...Read more ›

Researchers constantly find that reading to children is valuable in a variety of ways, not least of which are instilling a love of reading and improved reading skills. With better parent-child bonding from reading, your child will also be more emotionally secure and able to relate better to others. Intellectual performance will expand as well. Spending time together watching television fails as a substitute.To help other parents apply this advice, as a parent of four I consulted an expert, our youngest child, and asked her to share with me her favorite books that were read to her as a young child. "Did I Ever Tell You How Lucky You Are?" was one of her picks.If my daughter picked the book, you may be wondering why I rated this book at four stars. That is an average rating of five stars for adults and three stars for children. Although my daughter liked the book, I think that most children won't get it. On the other hand, they will think it is funny, and that's a fair benefit from any book. But the moral will be missed.This book is the most humorous variant on the admonition that every parent uses with children: Don't you know there are people starving in Blank! Because someone is worse off than you is supposed to make you feel better. It never worked for me when my parents tried that. After you have lived a while though, you begin to count your blessings. Having seen the downside as portrayed by Dr. Seuss will make you feel even more relieved by poking fun at your self concerns.In this book, you will meet people with all kinds of thorny problems, starting with an old man sitting on top of cactus in the Desert of Drize. Ouch!No job could be as bad as putting the Bunglebung Bridge together.Read more ›

Adults as well as children appreciate this book. The message that we should all consider how lucky we are is delivered in classical Seuss style with rhymes and nonsensical words - but is still a powerful message that most of us need to hear now and then. I consider this one of his best works because it not only delivers a good message, reading it is delightful entertainment. Read it aloud to both young and old.

When one mentions 'Dr. Seuss' the cat in the hat, Green Eggs and Ham and of course, the Grinch who Stole Christmas come to mind, yet this has always been considered a classic. Why you are asking, just why is that? Is it because it is good, or bombastic? Why is this book considered a classic? Could it be it's marvelous jokes, or it's enjoyable little mischevious pokes, at the world around. Is it because it is so implausible, in fact applausible, in it's own right? Could it be that it is more fun to read at night? Why isn't it here or there? Why isn't it anywhere? The content of the book at charge, is amazingly hysterical, the enjoyment was large. If I had to choose one book by Seuss, this would be the only one to NOT say, vamous. It is philisophical, optical, practical, and factual. It can be enjoyable for 3-year-old Sally or 30-year-old Sam! After reading such a great book, I personally took a second look, at how lucky I really am.

From my childhood to today, this is by far at the top of my "best book" list. I watch in amazement as my 5 year old ponders the situations and realizes how nice it is to feel secure and loved right in her own home. The philosophy in our house comes from the simple line, "....Thank goodness you're not something someone forgot....".

More About the Author

"A person's a person, no matter how small," Theodor Seuss Geisel, a.k.a. Dr. Seuss, would say. "Children want the same things we want. To laugh, to be challenged, to be entertained and delighted."

Brilliant, playful, and always respectful of children, Dr. Seuss charmed his way into the consciousness of four generations of youngsters and parents. In the process, he helped millions of kids learn to read.

Dr. Seuss was born Theodor Geisel in Springfield, Massachusetts, on March 2, 1904. After graduating from Dartmouth College in 1925, he went to Oxford University, intending to acquire a doctorate in literature. At Oxford, Geisel met Helen Palmer, whom he wed in 1927. Upon his return to America later that year, Geisel published cartoons and humorous articles for Judge, the leading humor magazine in America at that time. His cartoons also appeared in major magazines such as Life, Vanity Fair, and Liberty. Geisel gained national exposure when he won an advertising contract for an insecticide called Flit. He coined the phrase, "Quick, Henry, the Flit!" which became a popular expression.

Geisel published his first children's book, And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street, in 1937, after 27 publishers rejected it.

Winner of the Pulitzer Prize in 1984, an Academy Award, three Emmy Awards, three Grammy Awards, and three Caldecott Honors, Geisel wrote and illustrated 44 books. While Theodor Geisel died on September 24, 1991, Dr. Seuss lives on, inspiring generations of children of all ages to explore the joys of reading.